The Why

My name is Rob Rashell and I’m an instructor at TPC Scottsdale and the TourAcademy. I’m happy to be joining Arizona Golfer as a contributor and will be sharing my experiences as both a player and as an instructor. I’ve played the best tours in the world (European Tour 2004, 2005, PGA TOUR 2005), and was lucky enough to sneak into a couple major championships (US Open 2005, 2008). I’ve turned most of my attention to teaching these days and look forward to sharing what I’ve learned along the way.

In starting almost anything, I’ve always thought the why is/was the most important ingredient. Take this column for example, the why for me is being a great opportunity to connect with you as readers and I’ve learned writing helps me hash out my ideas, thoughts, and experiences. Once the why is there for me, I really enjoy spending time in whatever I choose to pursue.

How does all this relate to your golf game? You can probably guess at this point, I strongly encourage you to find a why in your golf game. Maybe you’ve got a spouse who is a good player and golf would be a great way to share some time together. Maybe you want to get your game in order for a club championship, or big event at your local club. Maybe you just want to complete your first 18 holes of golf, counting every shot, posting your first official score.

I promise you, once you have a why that really resonates, the rest of the time you spend getting better will be a ton of fun. We all have busy days, and have to carve out time to hit some putts, grab a bucket of balls or decide to play nine holes. Having a why helps motivate you to carve out that bit of time and make your practice sessions more valuable.

As a player, I would always imagine myself playing with other great players in the field or imagine a shot I needed to hit on a certain hole. All of these things made practice time more meaningful and purposeful, and when the actual tournament arrived, I felt prepared to play my best.

So, I’d love to hear from the readers of Arizona Golfer, and help you come up with your “why”, I’ll even throw in a little prize. Send me your why (rrashell@touracademy.com), and the best entry will get a free 30 minute lesson with me at TPC Scottsdale. I’ll work with my editor to go over the entries and we’ll decide which one we think is best. I’ll share the winning “why” next month, at the end of the column.